California Dream
Tucked behind this heritage home in Sydney is an ingenious extension that serves its owners just perfectly.
Bringing a heritage bungalow up to date gave its owners the best of both worlds.
There are many benefits to knowing a good architect, and one of them is that you can seek their expert advice on a property before you buy. That’s exactly what Jacqui and Daniel, the owners of this beautiful California bungalow in Sydney’s inner west, did. The couple and their three children – Charlotte, 13, Chiara, 11, and Isaac, seven – were living in a part of Sydney governed by some of the nation’s strictest conservation rules. They wanted to stay in the area, but were on the lookout for a house they could transform into their ideal family home.
“Any property they were considering, they’d run past us so we could let them know what the achievable scope of work would be,” says architect Eva-Marie Prineas, who worked closely on this project with architect Jacqueline Lindeman, her colleague at Studio Prineas. “When this house came up for sale, we said ‘grab it’ because it had a reasonably dramatic level change from the front of the house to the back. We could see that there was
potential to tuck a new addition in behind the existing house.”
Rather than simply meeting the heritage requirements, the Studio Prineas team embraced them wholeheartedly. “We took the Manor Red colour from the roof and used tonal variations of it right through the house.” The palette is warm and playful, flowing through the decorative brickwork, the kitchen island and even the grout in the bathrooms.
The home’s interiors might have been outdated when Jacqui and Daniel bought it in early 2019, but the building itself was in good condition. Inside, spaces were simply remodelled to work better for the family. From the front door, abroad hall way leads to the main bedroom suite, Isaac’s room, a formal living room, the girls’ bedrooms and a retreat for the children.
A set of stairs connects these spaces to the new, lower section of the house (also accessible from the garage), which contains the kitchen, dining zone and a sunken living area. The kitchen is a masterful mix of brick-look tiles on the floor and skirting, and handleless timberveneer cabinetry with rattan insets that cleverly disguise the airconditioning vents. Star of the space, though, is the island bench with its red-veined Valencia marble a perfect match for the home’s palette. The dining area is punctuated by a pair of Vitra ‘Akari 75A’ pendant lights and a skylight set off-centre so as to provide a softer, more diffused light.
This space flows on to the spectacular sunken living room. It’s been carefully lowered so as to create a visual connection with the waterline of the pool. “Because of the nature of this space, it made sense to build in the sofa,” says Eva-Marie. Decorative brickwork features once again and is neatly complemented by the lines in the rug used in this room.
“I LOVE THE KITCHEN’S MARBLE AND HOW IT FITS WITH THE WARM, NEUTRAL AESTHETIC OF OUR HOME.” Jacqui, owner
Daniel and Jacqui wanted a good stretch of lawn for the kids to play on and a generous swimming pool. “Looking at the available space we had, our solution was to connect the pool to the house,” says EvaMarie. “The pool house at the end of the garden acts as a kind of exclamation point as you look out to it.” With its covered barbecue and built-in daybed, this is a space that’ s as hard working as it is great looking.
The renovation work was complete just before Christmas in 2019 and the family were able to enjoy their first summer with a pool of their own. “Eva-Marie was great to work with,” says Jacqui. “She came to us with ideas and suggestions, but she took our input onboard. There was always the right balance between inspiration and practicality and, as a result, we have a home that we are beyond pleased with.”